Essex County
New Jersey · FIPS 34013
According to CFPB HMDA 2024 application volume among U.S. counties, Essex County ranks #109 of 3,210, and #5 of 21 in New Jersey.
Mortgage lending activity in Essex County, New Jersey based on lender filings under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). Data covers all applications received by HMDA-reporting institutions operating in this county during 2024. Why mortgages get denied walks the denial-reason codes that appear in books like this one.
Local mortgage market. Essex County, New Jersey saw 23,571 HMDA-reported mortgage applications in 2024. Lenders originated 10,414 of those loans and denied 4,791, producing a denial rate of 20.3% and an approval (origination) rate of 44.2%. The average loan amount was $497,775 at an average note rate of 7.44%, with applicants self-reporting average annual income of $40K. 392 distinct institutions reported mortgage activity in this county.
Borrower leverage and affordability signal. The loan-to-income ratio averages 12.4x, meaning typical borrowers took on mortgages of about 12.4 times their annual income. That ratio is a rough affordability signal: higher multiples imply tighter monthly budgets and greater exposure to rate or income shocks. See our methodology for how to read the denial rate against a local applicant pool. This page is informational data reporting, not financial, legal, or mortgage advice.
Lender concentration in Essex County
In Essex County, lead originator Rocket Mortgage funded only 5.2% of 10,414 originated loans, below the county fleet's lower tercile (~10.9% top-1 share). The top three reporters together hold 14.3% of the book, so shopping across channels still meets many active filers.
Counties With Similar Application Volume
Nationwide counties nearest to Essex County's 23,571 HMDA applications.
Counties With a Similar Average Loan
Nationwide counties nearest to Essex County's $497,775 average loan (deduped against volume peers).
Lenders active in Essex County
Rocket Mortgage funded 544 of the 10,414 loans originated in Essex County, 5.2% of the county. 392 lenders reported activity here.
| # | Lender | Originated | Market Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rocket Mortgage | 544 | 5.2% |
| 2 | CBNA Year to Date | 473 | 4.5% |
| 3 | Crosscountry Mortgage, LLC | 468 | 4.5% |
| 4 | United Wholesale Mortgage | 464 | 4.5% |
| 5 | Guaranteed Rate, INC. | 440 | 4.2% |
Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) 2024. County FIPS codes per U.S. Census Bureau standards.
Data from FFIEC / CFPB HMDA Snapshot National Loan-Level Dataset (2024). Provided for informational purposes only; does not constitute financial advice for Essex County borrowers.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Every figure on PlainLender is rendered directly from CFPB HMDA federal source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This Essex County page draws directly on CFPB HMDA federal source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-10. HMDA figures are lender-filed application outcomes for a published reporting year - not creditworthiness scores, rate quotes, Loan Estimates, underwriting decisions, or mortgage advice.